Some pundits try way too hard to be wacky, zany and funny - and end up just being cheesy and annoying. 'Merse', on the other hand, has a unique ability to be wet-your-pants hilarious… without even meaning to be.

For the perfect example of what we mean, just check out the video below.

The clip shows 'The Magic Man' (as no-one other than that bloke from Soccer AM calls him) chatting with Jeff Stelling ahead of the FA Cup Third Round. The idea is pretty simple: Stelling asks Merson to name three teams he might back to win the world's oldest cup competition this season.

Paul Merson: guaranteed comedy gold (Image: Skysports)

Normally, the unintentional Merson comedy magic comes from an inability to pronounce someone's name or a Kammy-style gaffe.

But this time, it comes from the identity of the three sides he tips for FA Cup glory.

Everton, Bournemouth and Stoke…

In fairness to Merse, at 4.53pm on Friday afternoon (when this video was posted on Twitter), those suggestions probably sounded reasonable.

However, his tips look slightly less awesome when you see how those three sides performed on Saturday: